Invisible rules and barriers of society have always affected the way people look or think about one another. Society has invisible rules on what or who is acceptable and what is not. In the story Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, there are characters who isolate themselves from the rest due to social barriers. Of Mice and Men is about two best friends, George and Lennie going to work at a ranch to make enough money to buy a farm. The story follows mainly those two characters, but also adds the interaction with them and other characters to show how lonely each character was during that time. Steinbeck uses Crooks, Curley’s wife, and Candy to show that loneliness and isolation are caused by social barriers.
Crooks is a character that is shown to be isolated from the rest of the men at the ranch. He was the only African American on the ranch and he had a crooked back. This story takes place at a time where African Americans were free, but still discriminated against so Crooks is often isolated at the ranch. He makes that very clear when he talked to Lennie, “I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse and you ain’t wanted in my room.” “Why ain’t you wanted?” Lennie asked “Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black. They say I stink” (Steinbeck 68). Crooks was not welcomed to the activities the ranchmen participated in because he was black and they made that very clear to him, so he didn’t bother them, “He kept his distance and demanded that others kept
Wrongs of Society Unfortunately in today's society, elderly people are mistreated along with handicapped people seen as unfit and useless. In Steinbeck's novel, they show a great deal of unfairness to both humans and animals when they are no longer useful or productive to society. Although, older generations helped raise us, in society we generally do not take care of them. Animals are put down, or killed when they no longer have a purpose to their owner. Also, in the novel handicaps are looked down on because they take time to care for and are not seen as good workers.
Steinbeck displays through the dialogue and characterizations that these characters experience isolation because of both social barriers and personal choice. Crooks being an African-American on the ranch, full of whites, struggles racially which causes his withdrawal from the society. Crooks explains to Lennie his when he’s accompanied by him “ A guy goes nuts if he ain 't got nobody. Don 't make no difference who the guy is long’s
Contrasting Crooks’ somber attitude with Lennie's undying innocence makes it clear where Steinbeck stands on the matter. For example, Crooks is temporarily seduced by the idea of Lennie and George’s farm, but is almost immediately brought down by reality, and Curley’s wife. She brings him back to the reality of a black man at the time, saying: "Well, you keep your place then, Nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny" (39). After this event occurs, Crooks disregards his rare idealism, saying that he “wouldn’ want to go no place like that” (41).
This shows Crooks is treated unfairly since he is the only African American man working in a ranch full of white men. When Crooks tells Curley’s Wife to leave his room and that she doesn’t have a right to be in there, she gets angry and threatens him by saying, “Well, you keep your place then,
Crooks is very lonely and solitude for being alone every day. As a result, he wants to have friends who he can communicate with. No one has come into his room except for Slim and the boss, so when Lennie and Candy come, it is difficult for Crooks to “conceal his pleasure with anger” (75). Although he wants to express anger about people coming into his room, inside he is happy about it and enjoys it. This instability and loneliness that he has leads him to say how he could work for George, Lennie, and Candy on their farm.
Crooks is constantly being discriminated against which is the effect of being colored at this time. During the book talks to Crooks about the farm he desires, Crook says to Lennie, “S'pose you couldn't go into the bunkhouse and play rummy 'cause you was black. How'd you like that?” () Crook is at the bottom of the social hierarchy because of his race. This inequality is the barrier to his dreams of being
The characters in “Of Mice and Men” have memorable personalities that we all can relate to due to their set archetypes. John Steinbeck uses these common and generalized in order to have the readers relate more to his characters. This allows the reader to experience the story and feelings of the characters much better and lets the reader to connect to the character’s feelings, or force the reader to form opinions that aligns with those of the main protagonist(s). In “Of Mice of Men”, readers are initially introduced to Curley’s Wife with words such as “tart”, and having “the eye”. Which, even if readers do not know what that means, it may be inferred through diction that she is overly flirty, or a “tramp”.
Crooks is excluded and abused, because he is African American. Candy is continuously rejected, and made to feel helpless and unworthy, because he is old and only has one hand. These traits have singled out Crook and Candy, and left them in a state of hopelessness and misery. The awful way that these characters are treated on the ranch embody how those who are different are treated in a uniformitarian society. Steinbeck exposes the horror of a exclusive society through the heartbreak that his characters go through.
there are two characters that interact with Crooks. Curley’s wife and Lennie. Lennie is a very strong man and he has a mental disability, and Curley’s wife is the only women on the ranch
Crooks was forced to sleep in a separate room next to the stable, apart from the bunks where the rest of the ranch workers resided. Crooks was unable to participate in anything that the rest of the ranch workers did. All of this was a result of his ethnicity. “ “Cause I’m black. They play cards, but I can’t play because I’m black.
Crooks is the only African American on the ranch and is also very kind to Lennie and shows him respect even though they have many differences. “‘Come on in and set a while,’ Crooks said. ‘Long as you won’t get out and leave me alone, you might as well set down.’” (69). Even though Lennie bothered him at first, he still lets him stay in the room because everyone else was gone and if Lennie was alone he could get himself into trouble.
The book Of Mice and Men is full of puzzling examples of the human condition, from Lennie and his mental disability to Curley only caring about his social appearance. With characters like these two, the book exploits the human condition that concerns circumstances life has given you. John Steinbeck brings to life what being a laborer in the American depression meant to the men and one woman who had enough personality to stand out. Steinbeck shows the human condition of men while they survive in the American depression.
Lastly Crooks goes through this theme because he has to stay in a room next to the barn and is isolated from the others because he is black. Steinbeck uses different factors to portray the loneliness and isolation within characters such as physical or mental, which then deliver various messages to readers. Curley’s wife struggles through loneliness and isolation because she is the only woman on the ranch. Curley’s wife is
Crooks is a black man who isn’t allowed to be in the house with all the men. The men won’t allow him to come in because of his color. Crooks is lonely and he doesn’t bother the men. One night Lennie came in and was talking to Crooks and telling them about the farm that they were going to get. For once Crooks thought well maybe I won’t be lonely I could go with them and don’t have worry about none of them.
One’s self has experienced loneliness from choice or forced into isolation. The novel ¨Of Mice and Men¨ written by John Steinbeck, took place during the Great Depression, near Soledad, California. The protagonist, George and the antagonist, Lennie are mid aged, white men who are working on a ranch with other mid aged, white men. Along with ones who aren’t as focused at the time, such as Crooks, the negro or black, Curley’s wife, the woman and, Candy, the old and weak man were treated differently from all the white, strong males in the novel due to the setting the novel. This making distance in relationships in Of Mice and Men, isolating these characters into loneliness.